Read a full match report for the Premier League game between Newcastle United
and Manchester City at St James' Park on Saturday, Dec 15, 2012.

At times this had the stamp of champions – even if manager Roberto Mancini later urged his team to show the same ruthlessness that he did in finally dropping Mario Balotelli not just from the starting line-up but from his match-day squad. The pouting Italian – Balotelli not Mancini this time – was left behind in Manchester.

“His form is not good, he’s not good to play,” Mancini said. “It’s better for him to train well.” In striker Balotelli’s absence, Mancini restored the Argentine partnership of Sergio Agüero and Carlos Tévez – the one that all logic seems to cry out should be his regular first-choice – and inevitably City won. Indeed, the last 13 times they have started together, they have been victorious.

Maybe the defeat to Manchester United last week was a salutary lesson for Mancini? Probably not. He was unhappy with the number of chances his side spurned during a first half, which Newcastle manager Alan Pardew conceded was a “golden period” for the champions, but he conceded it was “important” to win after last weekend’s set-back.

Certainly there was a powerful reaction. Newcastle may be low in confidence, may be desperately missing the injured pair of Yoann Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa, but here was plenty of fight, plenty of spirit, plenty to build on for Pardew, with Vernun Anita outstanding and Papiss Cisse out of luck.

By the end, City were shoring things up with five at the back and Javi Garcia as a holding midfielder, stationed marginally in front of them, but some of their football in a scintillating first half was breathtaking and much of it was orchestrated by Samir Nasri before he departed with a groin injury in the first half.

Nasri was at fault last Sunday for United’s winning goal, ducking out of Robin van Persie’s free-kick, and he has been laid-low with migraine headaches all week, but it was Davide Santon who will be feeling sore this morning. The right-footed Italian left-back was the cover story in the Newcastle match programme – “Santon Claus” was the headline but this was a nightmare before Christmas for the defender, who was at fault for City’s first two goals.

By then, though, Newcastle should have been in front. Twice City were indebted to goalkeeper Joe Hart, who pushed away Cisse’s low snap-shot and then beat out Mike Williamson’s volley, as Newcastle threatened to build the head of steam that would get their season back on track.

Mancini seemed agitated. But then suddenly, and quite wonderfully, his team clicked through the gears, with Yaya Touré growing into a towering influence. He was swift and sharp in City’s first goal, picking out Nasri, who was allowed to run in behind Santon. The Frenchman squared — and Agüero tapped home.

Suddenly chances came thick and very fast: Tévez’s shot was kicked away by Tim Krul, Nasri struck a post from a tight angle, only for the rebound to fall to Agüero, whose effort was cleared off the line by Williamson; Nasri’s cross was just too far in front of Tevez and then the striker fired narrowly wide after being teed up again.

“It was a period of the game in which we were hanging on in there,” said Pardew. Newcastle were certainly on the ropes and then came what appeared to be the knock-out: a corner was won, it was met by Javi Garcia with a powerful header, but Santon was there on the line. Surely, he would clear? But, no.

Maybe distracted by Agüero he swung at the ball, missed, it struck his standing leg and squirmed into the net. In fairness, Newcastle then rallied magnificently with Pardew claiming they “bossed” the second period in which Cheikh Tiote snapped into tackles and Anita moved the ball forward slickly.

Ba also fired into life — reaching the ball as Fabricio Coloccini hooked a half-cleared corner back into the City penalty area to head beyond Hart.

The pivotal moment came when Cisse swivelled, wrong-footing Gael Clichy. Given a sight of goal he would have buried it last season — instead his shot sailed over and Pardew was left clutching his head.

Then on came Joleon Lescott, another player who has been strangely underused at City this season, and he also made a difference — adding strength to Mancini’s defence.

It also helped City to regain their composure and then their two-goal advantage as Silva rolled the ball to the over-lapping Pablo Zabaleta, who was given the time to pick out Touré and he turned the ball beyond Krul.

Newcastle racked up 16 efforts on goal to City’s 14 but still came away with no points — it is now one win in 11 for them, five defeats in six. “We’re missing a bit of confidence, a bit of resilience,” Pardew said. “There’s not a lot really wrong.”

Later Mancini chipped away at Sir Alex Ferguson even if United re-opened their six-point lead soon after this game finished. The title race was on — and he couldn’t help but refer to United’s capitulation last season.

“He knows football better than me and he knows that this championship is not finished when there are even only three games to the end,” he said. “Now there are 21 games.”